Toxic chemicals in Canadian fish-eating birds

Cross-country comparison of DDE and PCB residue levels in cormorant, gull and tern eggs in Canada reveal that bird populations at the Great Lakes are most contaminated with those pollutants. DDE levels have been correlated with reproductive failure in Double-crested Cormorants in the Great Lakes with eggshell thinning as a major factor. Low reproductive success in Herring Gull colonies at Lake Ontario is associated with high chlorinated hydrocarbon levels in eggs. Fish-eating birds in the Wabigoon River system, northwestern Ontario, are among the most known mercury contaminated birds. It is suggested that the effects of mercury on the reproduction of fish-eating birds should be further examined there.Fish-eating birds occupy the highest levels of the food web and magnification of toxic chemicals through prey organisms in this web makes those birds vulnerable to the effects of environmental contaminants. Since fish-eating birds are present everywhere in Canada's freshwater and marine habitats and occupy various niches there, they may serve as pollution indicators in various food chains of our aquatic environment. Colonial birds are especially valuable indicators as pollution effects on total bird populations can be studied. Baseline information on fish-eating bird populations should now be collected everywhere in Canada for measuring present and future effects of environmental pollutants, as well as other man-made disturbances on their populations.     

Aeolian Sky packaged chemicals pollution incident

Three and a half thousand packages of chemicals, including at least 956 containing hazardous substances were washed ashore on to the beaches of southern England. They were believed at the time to have come from the wreck of the Aeolian Sky. There is now a strong suspicion that half the packages, including 32 canisters of arsenic trichloride, were lost from the deck cargo of another vessel in the English Channel. Despite difficulties in identifying the contents of many unlabelled chemical packages found on the shore, most were recovered during clearance operations by Local Authorities. Although there was no evidence of any ecological damage, 20 people were taken to hospital for treatment or precautionary medical examinations following contact with opened or leaking packages. This incident raised questions regarding international reporting procedures, liability and compensation arrangements following losses of packaged chemical cargoes at sea.     

How to obtain alert velocity thresholds for large rockslides

A reliable forecast of the failure stage of large rockslides is difficult, because of non-linear time dependency of displacements and seasonal effects. Aim of this paper is to suggest a practical method to prepare alert thresholds for large rockslides, assessing critical values of velocity for carrying out civil protection actions using monitoring data. Adopted data concern the 20 Mm³ Ruinon rockslide (Valfurva, Central Alps, Italy), still evolving and suitable to originate a fast moving rock avalanche. Multitemporal analysis of aerial photos, LIDAR-ALTM laser topography, field survey and geomechanical analyses allowed to infer the rockslide kinematics and better understand data provided by a monitoring network including distometers, extensometers, GPS benchmarks and inclinometers. The analysis of displacement and rainfall data over five years (1997–2001) allowed to recognise three different evolutionary patterns of displacements, showing a continuously increasing rate since 1997. Data representing large-scale behaviour of the rock mass were fitted by power-law curves, according to the “accelerating creep” model by Voight, in order to evaluate a suitable failure time. This was hampered by the large seasonal deviations, which can significantly delay the occurrence of failure. Data were fitted using the Voight’s equation, expressed in terms of displacement, through non-linear estimation techniques, in order to find values of the controlling parameters (A, α and t_f) suitable to represent the mechanical behaviour of the rock mass approaching the failure. This allowed to compute velocity–time theoretical curves and to define different velocity threshold values (pre-alert, alert and emergency) to be used for emergency management.     

A prototype system for earthquake early-warning and alert management in southern Italy

The Irpinia Seismic Network (ISNet) is deployed in Southern Apennines along the active fault system responsible for the 1980, November 23, M _s 6.9 Campania–Lucania earthquake. It is set up by 28 stations and covers an area of about 100 × 70 km². Each site is equipped with a 1-g full-scale accelerometer and a short-period velocimeter. Due to its design characteristics, i.e., the wide dynamic range and the high density of stations, the ISNet network is mainly devoted to estimating in real-time the earthquake location and magnitude from low- to high- magnitude events, and to providing ground-motion parameters values so to get some insights about the ground shaking expected. Moreover, the availability of high-quality of data allows studying the source processes related to the seismogenetic structures in the area. The network layout, the data communication system and protocols and the main instrumental features are described in the paper. The data analysis is managed by Earthworm software package that also provides the earthquake location while custom software has been developed for real-time computation of the source parameters and shaking maps. Technical details about these procedures are given in the article. The data collected at the ISNet stations are available upon request.     

Predicting effects of toxic chemicals in the marine environment

Ecological risks are typically characterized in risk assessment procedures by considering the ratio between exposure concentrations and critical effect concentrations. In OECD countries, critical effect concentrations are typically derived from laboratory-based ecotoxicity tests using well-defined protocols on a limited number of species. More and more countries in the tropics are adopting this approach in environmental assessment, protection, and management. In this article we consider a number of issues associated with such an approach, and in particular potential problems with extrapolating effects on individuals observed in laboratory-based ecotoxicological investigations to effects on ecosystems. It is hoped that by making explicit some of the assumptions made in the potential limitations of these tests, we can better target our limited resources to protect valuable and vulnerable systems.     

掘进巷道工程隐患电激励征候与预警

巷道或隧道等掘进工程中,当施工掌子面前方存在储水构造等低电阻率隐患时,于掌子面供电的供电电流会被隐患吸引,使掌子面后方已开挖巷道内电场呈异常分布,形成一种隐患电激励征候,表征参数为一段观测距离上的电位或电场强度分布;随着巷道掘进,掌子面逐渐迫近隐患,巷道内分布电场的异常幅度会不断加大,电激励征候表征越显著.通过巷道或隧道内电场分布的异常幅度和变化趋势,无需通过视电阻率的转换,即可实现隐患的预警预报.电激励征候的测试通过远参考电极即无穷远电极和测量电极系来完成绝对电位的测量,提高了测试电位的幅度和信噪比,为解释推断提供了可信度高的数据参数.     

Biodegradation of toxic chemicals in Guayanilla Bay,Puerto Rico

Studies were conducted to assess the factors that may influence the rate and extent of biodegradation of biphenyl, naphthalene, phenanthrene, pentachlorophenol (PCP) and p-nitrophenol in water samples collected from the Guayanilla Bay (18 degrees N; 67.45 degrees W), southwest of Puerto Rico. In vitro studies mediated slow degradation of biphenyl, naphthalene and phenanthrene substrates by natural microbial flora present in the Bay. Addition of KNO(3) as a source of inorganic N greatly enhanced the degradation of phenanthrene but not of naphthalene, suggesting that effects on degradation due to nutrient limitation were compound specific. The rate and extent of degradation of naphthalene and PCP were higher in water samples collected closer to the source of contamination, i.e. the petrochemical complex. The identity of a phenanthrene degrading bacterium, previously identified by conventional phenotypic method (Zaidi et al., Utilizing Nature's Advanced Materials, Oxford Unviersity Press, 1999) as Alteromonas sp., was confirmed by partial DNA sequencing of the small subunit rRNA gene.     

Biological effects in the management of chemicals in the marine environment

Coastal ecosystems are impacted by many stressors, of which chemicals are possibly not the most important. Chemicals differ from most other stressors such as eutrophication and hypersedimentation in the time scale-effects from the latter act on the scale of weeks or months, whereas effects from chemicals may take years to manifest themselves in population or community changes. There are four different approaches available to manage chemicals in marine ecosystems: target contaminant levels, target individual effects, target community impacts (biodiversity) and, finally, target processes. These four differ in the analytical methods available and the analyst's ability to separate effects from chemicals from other environmental factors and natural variation. There is furthermore, a need to develop a framework to integrate biological effects methods with risk assessment methodology. Such integration will improve the basis for risk-based assessment of chemicals. A problematic issue relevant to all aspects of environmental management are the interactions between chemicals, and between chemicals and eutrophication or sedimentation. There is a clear need for more knowledge about such interactions.     

The seismic alert system of Mexico (SASMEX): Progress and its current applications

The Seismic Alert System of Mexico (SASMEX) is being conformed by the Seismic Alert System of Mexico City (SAS), pioneer in public earthquake early warning services and the Seismic Alert System of Oaxaca City (SASO), with a set 12 and 36 sensing field stations, respectively. Today, the alerting functions of these systems are currently in the process of integration. SAS started in 1991 and SASO in 2003, have emitted 78 early warnings of more than 2350 earthquakes detected by their sensing field stations. Authorities of Mexico Federal District (GDF) and the State of Oaxaca, since 2003 agreed with Mexico’s Ministry of the Interior (SEGOB), coordinate necessary to improve their seismic alert systems and join their roles to make must efficient possible disaster mitigation activities that might cause strong Mexican earthquakes. This paper describes the main current applications of SAS and SASO: schools, radio and TV commercial broadcast, and the Alternate Emitters of Seismic Alert System (EASAS) operating in Acapulco and Chilpancingo both of Guerrero state. To reach better efficiency in the seismic warning delivery, since 2009 we are applying NWR-SAME receivers in Mexico City Valley, and testing their codes enhancement to obtain the expedite earthquake warning issuing. Also the GDF is promoting to increase the observation capacity of the seismic danger around Mexico City, to detect it and warn any strong effect, reducing a new possible seismic disaster, and recently the SEGOB, hereby their General Coordination of Civil Protection, agreed to extend an SASMEX sensor coverage between Chiapas and Jalisco states to issuing earthquake warning signal to reduce their population vulnerability.     

A field survey of chemicals and biological products used in shrimp farming

This study documented the use of chemicals and biological products in marine and brackish water shrimp farming in Thailand, the world's top producer of farmed shrimp. Interviews were conducted with 76 shrimp farmers in three major shrimp producing regions, the eastern Gulf coast, the southern Gulf coast and the Andaman coast area. Farmers in the study used on average 13 different chemicals and biological products. The most commonly used products were soil and water treatment products, pesticides and disinfectants. Farmers in the southern Gulf coast area used a larger number of products than farmers in the other two areas. In the study, the use of more than 290 different chemicals and biological products was documented. Many of the pesticides, disinfectants and antibiotics used by the farmers could have negative effects on the cultured shrimps, cause a risk for food safety, occupational health, and/or have negative effects on adjacent ecosystems. Manufacturers and retailers of the products often neglected to provide farmers with necessary information regarding active ingredient and relevant instructions for safe and efficient use.     

Robustness of spatial ranges of environmental chemicals to changes in model dimension

 A comparison is made between a circular and a more adequate spherical reaction-diffusion multi-media mass balance model. This comparison adds new aspects to ongoing debates about more effective assessments of potentially harmful substances including persistent organic pollutants (POPs). The circular model serves as a paradigm in investigations of persistence and spatial range of non-polar chemicals. An analytic solution of the spherical model is presented. It is utilized in order to establish circular spatial ranges as versatile approximations of their spherical counterparts for most cases. Deviations in the few exceptions are demonstrated as playing a minor role compared to sensitivities against parameter uncertainties which characterize these exceptional cases as well. The sensitivities are fundamentally linked to the multi-scale nature of the underlying system. Finally, the insensitivity of spatial ranges with respect to dimension – circle versus sphere – is further secured by extensive studies of the role of the mode of entry for which a set of rules is established. Present address: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research P.O. Box 60 12 03, D-14412 Potsdam, Germany e-mail: held@pik-potsdam.de The author would like to thank B. H. Hawkins, H. A. Schweers, and M. Str?be for helpful comments.     

Adsorption and desorption behaviors of selected endocrine disrupting chemicals in simulated gastrointestinal fluids

An in vitro technique using simulated gastrointestinal (GI) fluids was applied to investigate the desorption of selected endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), i.e. bisphenol A (BPA) and 17 α-ethinylestradiol (EE2), from the marine sediment in the digestive environment. The results show that the GI fluids suppressed chemical adsorption and greatly increased the desorption of BPA and EE2 from the sediment. Pepsin in the gastric fluid would compete for the adsorption sites with the adsorbates, and bile salts in the intestinal fluid had a solubilization effect on the chemicals. The amount of chemical release from the sediment in different fluids followed intestinal (fed) > intestinal (fasted) > gastric > saline water. During the dynamic desorption tests, 62% and 21% of sediment-bound BPA and EE2, respectively, could be released into the simulated GI fluids. The enhanced desorption of EDCs from sediment in the digestive system would make the pollutants more bioavailable in the ecosystem.     

On the temporal resolution of mass balance models for soluble chemicals in soils

A daily step model of chemical mass balance in the topsoil is presented and validated at the three experimental sites in Europe, and subsequently applied to perform two distinct numerical experiments. First, an experiment was run using hypothetic soluble chemicals with half‐lives ranging from 10^?1 to 10⁴, with a range of representative European climate and soil properties, assuming uniform constant emissions of the chemicals throughout the year. Chemical mass in soil from the daily step model calculations can be surrogated by the monthly step model consistently parameterized in terms of absolute values, patterns and inter‐monthly variability with decreasing accuracy at higher chemical half‐lives. Leaching fluxes can be also surrogated by the monthly step calculation, although with higher errors. Runoff is correct in the order of magnitude, but it shows only a weak correlation with the monthly mean of the daily model output. For leaching and runoff, the accuracy depends mainly on soil properties. Variability is well reproduced for both leaching and runoff. The second experiment represented a pulse emission of chemicals discharged on a single day in a 12‐month period. Results from the annual average mass of chemicals in the soil, annual runoff and leaching fluxes from the daily step model were compared with the results obtained from the experiment assuming constant‐removal rates for the year. The two values are within a factor of 10 for half‐lives longer than 10 days; therefore, it is possible to emulate the daily step model with a simple constant‐removal rate model for screening‐level assessment. The experiments suggest that simpler schemes may be a practical screening‐level approximation of detailed daily step models for both continuous and pulse emissions, two cases providing extreme bounds of variation to real world emissions. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The distribution and relative toxic potential of organic chemicals in a PCB contaminated bay

For reliable monitoring of environmental improvement, the PCB contaminated bay Orserumsviken on Sweden's Baltic coast was investigated prior to remediation. We examined PCB congener patterns and the relative toxic potential of PCBs in extracts of three matrices: bottom sediment, settling particulate matter and the dissolved phase (obtained from semi-permeable membrane devices). Congener patterns were similar in all matrices. Three fractions were isolated from the extracts: (1) aliphatic and monocyclic aromatic compounds (MAC-fraction), (2) dicyclic aromatic compounds (DAC-fraction), including PCBs, and (3) polycyclic aromatic compounds (PAC-fraction), including PAHs. Total extracts and fractions were injected into newly fertilised rainbow trout eggs. At larval stage, hepatic EROD activities were quantified. Though high, the PCB contamination could explain only an estimated 1-5% of the total EROD induction. The order of EROD induction potential was: total extract > PAC-fraction > DAC-fraction > MAC-fraction in all matrices, suggesting that in Orserumsviken PACs made a larger contribution to the EROD induction potential than PCBs and other DACs.